Getting To Know You....

We have a new and much more varied cast of characters here. I was going to try to post pictures, but unfortunately, the only camera here is minus it's network cable, so pictures will have to wait!
I will try my best to describe the denizens of this small farmette, though..

First of all, there's me! Since most of the dear readers of this blog have been around for a bit, they know I am 53, red hair, a bit chubby and I usually have a smile on my face---even in the midst of disaster. I keep smiling because I know things could be FAR worse, regardless of the chaos around me!

Enter, stage left, my amazing, wonderful, Darlin' Man. Career military and heading for retirement row, with the main dream in his head to be a farmer. Since I have more experience than him at farmer and livestock raising endeavors, he often defers to me. He is a VERY good hand at construction projects (wait until I post pics of the goat pen! A force 5 hurricane could not bring that structure down!) and he frequently has ideas that make things around here a bit easier.

Straggling behind him are Boy (age 15) and Girl (age 16).
Yes, I am now a stepmother of sorts. Man and I are not yet legally married, but, as I say, what's a piece of paper between dear friends?
Boy is eager to please (especially  to curry his dad's favor) and can be counted on for help around our tiny homestead. Generally in good humor, his interests include music, video games, girls, video games, shooting, video games..oh yes, more video games!
Girl seems a lot more reflective and moody. Hates school, mainly wears black, prefers to hang out in her room and play on her computer. She enjoys video games, but also has interest in art, video games, cinema, writing, farming, gardening and some cooking.
Neither one has had a bad word to say about my cooking, so they both get points from me!

On to the menagerie!
The goats:
Wang, the billy. Very protective of his *ladies*, he begrudgingly will let us in the pen to rake it a couple times a week. He is a tan/brown color with a white belly.
Champagne, a lovely doe , white and pale brown. Delicate and playful, she is also the most talkative of the 3 goats and will offer a *running commentary* whenever anyone is out in the yard.
Patches, a smaller doe, looks like a mini-Holstein cow! White with black spots. Most human affectionate, she will nuzzle you when you go out to the pen and adores having her head scratched a little.

The chickens:
Big Red, the rooster. Red is a large rooster who was originally destined for the fighting ring until a neighbor rescued him from that fate. Red is large and aggressive. Truly the *cock of the walk*, he allows NO ONE near his hens! Woe to any dog, cat, weasel, fox, or even Tyrannosaurus Rex that approaches Red's girls! Red might go down, but he will surely go down fighting ferociously!
Miss Priscilla and Gertrude, Red's girls. Currently, we have only 2 hens (although that will change within the month) Miss Priscilla is a neat, black hen. She spends her days scratching the dirt as close to Red as possible. Gertrude, a red hen, is a bit more independent and , occasionally, she and Red have a mild squabble.

The Dogs:
Andy, aka Lug, aka Dunder is a purebred German Shepherd. Eager to please, he is a bit slow on learning some of his lessons, and because he is still in adolescence, he has a tendency to trip over his own feet at times. He is very affectionate, but still has a tendency to chew on arms, hands, feet of those he loves. He is also a bit *barky* and will sometimes freak out over a bird landing in the fig tree, although the next day he'll ignore the same thing.
Kali, a young female German Shepherd is about 5 months old and will be leaving us within the next few days, as we were only taking care of her temporarily for a friend.Thank goodness! She is a digger...she has dug holes all over the property, under fences, in the compost heap, everywhere!

Soon to join the household will be my dog, Siona. A friend is driving her down. I know, she is actually my sons dog, but since my son is about to embark on some traveling adventures of his own, it was decided that Siona would be better off with me.

So, there you have it, our cast of characters..
Lamb (myself)
Man
Girl
Boy
Wang
Champagne
Patches
Big Red
Miss Priscilla
Gertrude
Andy
Kali (soon to be gone)
and
Siona (soon to be here)